Developing Successful ICT Strategies: Competitive Advantages in a Global Knowledge-driven Society (Premier Reference Source)

420 Pages·2007·3.94 MB·English

by  M. Hakikur Rahman

Developing Successful
ICT Strategies:
Competitive Advantages in a
Global Knowledge-Driven
Society
Hakikur Rahman
SDNP, Bangladesh
InformatIon scIence reference
Hershey • New York
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Developing successful ICT strategies : competitive advantages in a global knowledge-driven society / M. Hakikur Rahman, editor.
p. cm.
Summary: "This book collects an authoritative core of research investigating the notion that information communication technologies
(ICTs) have the potential to improve the lives of people and contribute to enhancing social conditions in developing countries through such
concepts as the Knowledge Society, open education, and e-governance"--Provided by publisher.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-1-59904-654-9 (hardcover)
ISBN-13: 978-1-59904-656-3 (ebook)
1. Information technology--Developing countries. 2. Technological innovations--Developing countries. 3. Information technology-
-Economic aspects--Developing countries. 4. Technological innovations--Economic aspects--Developing countries. 5. Knowledge
management. I. Rahman, Hakikur, 1957-
HC59.72.I55D48 2008
303.48'33091724--dc22
2007016962
British Cataloguing in Publication Data
A Cataloguing in Publication record for this book is available from the British Library.
All work contributed to this book set is original material. The views expressed in this book are those of the authors, but not necessarily of
the publisher.
Table of Contents
Foreward ............................................................................................................................................xiii
Preface ................................................................................................................................................xiv
Acknowledgment ...............................................................................................................................xxi
Section I
Policy Initiation
Chapter I
An Overview on Strategic ICT Implementations Toward Developing
Knowledge Societies / Hakikur Rahman ................................................................................................1
Chapter II
Strategy Development: A Focus on Process / Suleman Aziz Lodhi and
Munir Ahmad ........................................................................................................................................40
Chapter III
Developing Strategies for Competitive Advantage / Tamio Shimizu, Marly Monteiro, and
Fernando Jose Barbin Laurindo ...........................................................................................................58
Chapter IV
The Internet Challenge to Public Service Broadcasters /
Juan Luis Manfredi Sánchez .................................................................................................................80
Chapter V
Civil Liability of ISPs, the Internet and Law/ Onyeka K. Osuji and Emmanuel Eze ...........................95
Section II
Education and Research
Chapter VI
Disintermediated Education / Helena Mitev and David Crowther .....................................................114
Chapter VII
Towards an ICT4D Geometry of Empowerment: Using Actor-Network Theory
to Understand and Improve ICT4D / Donna D. Rubinoff ...................................................................133
Chapter VIII
Beyond Localization: Effective Learning Strategies for Cross-Cultural E-Learning /
Patrick Dunn and Alessandra Marinetti .............................................................................................155
Chapter IX
Strategies for Virtual Learning and E-Entrepreneurship in Higher Education/
Juha Kettunen and Mauri Kantola .....................................................................................................165
Chapter X
Computer-Based Assessment for Academic Evaluation / Devan Govender.......................................177
Section III
E-Concepts
Chapter XI
Creating Competitive Advantage: The Emergence of a New Business through
Collaborative Networks – An Empirical Case Study in the ICT Sector /
Arla Juntunen ......................................................................................................................................202
Chapter XII
Implementation of E-Governance: Some Technical Issues and Challenges /
Lalitsen Sharma ..................................................................................................................................226
Chapter XIII
Integration Strategies and Tactics for Information Technology Governance /
Ryan R. Peterson .................................................................................................................................240
Chapter XIV
The Paradigm of E-Commerce in E-Government and E-Democracy /
Bernd Carsten Stahl ............................................................................................................................281
Section IV
Strategic ICT Applications
Chapter XV
Delivering More Effective Community Consultation and Support for Regional
ICT Programs / Lynne De Weaver and Allan H. Ellis .........................................................................298
Chapter XVI
Policy Initiatives in Jamaica and their Impact on the Development of ICT /
Sheryl Thompson and David Brown ...................................................................................................313
Chapter XVII
Digital Government Development Strategies: Lessons for Policy Makers from a
Comparative Perspective / Yu-Che Chen and Richard Knepper .........................................................334
Compilation of References ..............................................................................................................357
About the Contributors ...................................................................................................................390
Index ...................................................................................................................................................394
Detailed Table of Contents
Foreward ............................................................................................................................................xiii
Preface ................................................................................................................................................xiv
Acknowledgment ...............................................................................................................................xxi
Section I
Policy Initiation
Chapter I
An Overview on Strategic ICT Implementations Toward Developing
Knowledge Societies / Hakikur Rahman ................................................................................................1
As nations continue to conceptualize, adopt, implement, and monitor their respective information and
communications technologies (ICTs) policies and e-strategies, it is vital that a critical assessment is
undertaken on their effective progress. This includes analysis of strategies, methodologies, and best
practices while weighing the impact, effectiveness, and efficiency of these policies and strategies.
However, the demands, motivations, and incentives of various governments for adopting, adapting,
and initiating ICTs varies from country to country, with diverse economic, social, cultural, and political
environments. Researches in this aspect recognized the necessity of a cohesive ICT policy and strategic
framework in each country for socio-economic development at their grass roots. The execution of these
policies and strategies should include concrete national commitment and strong political will at the highest
levels of government, and an enabling environment that promotes stakeholder involvement in setting
agendas and implementing plans and programs. This chapter provides insights into various national
implementations in promoting related activities, tries to establish an analytical approach that would
assist in formulating ICT policies and strategies by identifying different ICT indicators. Furthermore, this
chapter focuses on critical aspects of different strategic national level policies with short-medium-long
term visions that targeted both the immediate needs of the populace and long-term needs of nations by
integrating ICTs. Finally, this chapter has recommended that via coherent and complimentary policies
that engage both the private sector and civil society organizations, nations can move forward towards
creating a knowledge society and at the same time by leveraging capabilities of ICT can address the
social, economic and political issues on the ground.
Chapter II
Strategy Development: A Focus on Process / Suleman Aziz Lodhi and
Munir Ahmad ........................................................................................................................................40
Trade globalization and advancement in ICT may be considered as the two major forces that will be
directing economic growth of a country in the coming years. Policy makers have realized the importance
of ICT in achieving national goals in the digital era. The developing and underdeveloped countries
generally lack research capacity and standard policy development processes that are critical for developing
a successful ICT policy. Cause of policy failure in these countries can most of the time, be traced to flaws
in policy development process rather than environmental complexity. The chapter provides an insight on
policy development process from strategic management perspective to highlight critical issues, which
are sometimes overlooked by policy makers. The purpose is to assist the policy makers in developing
successful ICT Policy for their countries.
Chapter III
Developing Strategies for Competitive Advantage / Tamio Shimizu, Marly Monteiro, and
Fernando Jose Barbin Laurindo ...........................................................................................................58
The focus of this chapter is on mapping the environment. It will show the main aspects of the model for
industry analysis and explain the process of forming strategic groups and pressure maps.
Chapter IV
The Internet Challenge to Public Service Broadcasters /
Juan Luis Manfredi Sánchez .................................................................................................................80
The expansion of the social influence of the Internet has led both general interest and national public
broadcasters to a structural challenge. The new online paradigm demands a full version of the public
enterprise, which include all the available tools to achieve its mission. The Internet would be the ideal
complement to the public service. Before this, public broadcasters should define its core business to attend
the public demand and to collaborate in the creation of the public sphere. Finally, the clear definition of
the public activities and the separation of public and commercial finance will be a main point. To confirm
the benefits of the intervention of the public broadcasters the cases of Spain and United Kingdom will
be studied.
Chapter V
Civil Liability of ISPs, the Internet and Law/ Onyeka K. Osuji and Emmanuel Eze ...........................95
This chapter examines the Internet and law relationship. Using rules and decisions on ISP
liability for civil defamation to illustrate, the chapter attempts to identify and proffer solutions
to the challenges posed by the Internet to law. It suggests legal recognition of the distinctive
nature of the Internet by policy makers and administrators as the key to addressing the legal
issues continually raised by the Internet with the result that appropriate legal strategies would be
applied to the Internet. The chapter also advocates international legislative action on the Internet
issues. Law, including its substantive and procedural contents, interpretation and administration,
is an important factor for encouraging or hindering continued Internet development.
Section II
Education and Research
Chapter VI
Disintermediated Education / Helena Mitev and David Crowther .....................................................114
In this chapter, it is argued that one of the benefits of IT is its role in enabling the disintermediation of
education to provide an environment in which all can participate. In the context of this chapter however,
the focus is on the role of the Internet as a disintermediating technology. There are many ramifications to
this but the focus is upon the implications as far as education is concerned. The controlling mechanisms
of education have been cost and geographical access. The Internet has changed both of these through its
disintermediating function, potentially allowing access to all. The purpose of this chapter is to theorise
this in considering the prognosis for development in various parts of the world.
Chapter VII
Towards an ICT4D Geometry of Empowerment: Using Actor-Network Theory
to Understand and Improve ICT4D / Donna D. Rubinoff ...................................................................133
This chapter introduces actor-network theory (ANT) as an approach to the analysis and improvement
of the use of ICT for development (ICT4D). It argues that ANT helps to conceptualize ICT beyond the
technological systems of the conventional “digital divide.” ANT supports thinking about the sociotechnical
networks that incorporate humans, hardware, institutions, texts, and policies, and so forth, into ICT
networks. It also supports the inclusion of marginal actors, helps to address development problems from
the perspective of those populations, and traces the networks of power that supports their participation
or exclusion. The author hopes that the ideas in this chapter will promote further discussion on the topic
and the refinement of an analytical framework for ICT4D.
Chapter VIII
Beyond Localization: Effective Learning Strategies for Cross-Cultural E-Learning /
Patrick Dunn and Alessandra Marinetti .............................................................................................155
Instructional systems are products of the cultures in which they are developed. Culture, which we define
here as “the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes the members of one group or category
of people from another” (Hofstede, 2001), has a pervasive influence on instructional systems, regardless
of whether these systems involve self-paced e-learning, synchronous or asynchronous computer-based
learning activities, or online communities of learners. The issue of culture’s impact on instructional
systems becomes most relevant and challenging where such systems are transferred across cultural
boundaries, or developed for multiple cultures. This is currently happening in many large, globally
dispersed organizations that use e-learning technologies to support the learning of their staff around the
world. Theories of learning and of cultural dimensions suggest that the effectiveness of certain types of
learning systems will be affected where they are used in culturally diverse environments. The aim of
this paper is to highlight the issues that designers of a wide range of e-learning experiences face when
designing e-learning for culturally diverse learner groups. We provide some models to support learning
practitioners, focusing in particular on the importance of a conscious, culturally-informed selection of
instructional strategies as the most critical part of the design and development process.
Chapter IX
Strategies for Virtual Learning and E-Entrepreneurship in Higher Education/
Juha Kettunen and Mauri Kantola .....................................................................................................165
This chapter presents the strategies of higher education institutions and how they can be described using
the balanced scorecard approach. The pedagogical ICT strategy describes the virtual learning and e-
entrepreneurship in higher education. Strategic themes are presented to describe what management believes
must be done to succeed and achieve the desired outcomes in virtual learning and e-entrepreneurship.
Strategy maps are used to describe the strategy in a graphical representation. In addition, the study
presents an example of the cooperation between a higher education institution and a spin-off company.
This chapter helps the educational administrators to better describe and implement strategies for virtual
learning and e-entrepreneurship.
Chapter X
Computer-Based Assessment for Academic Evaluation / Devan Govender.......................................177
As student numbers and lecturer workloads increase, traditional methods of assessment make it rather
difficult to undertake effective assessment and provide students with in-depth, relevant, specific, and
speedy feedback. It is thus incumbent on tertiary academic institutions, more especially distance education
providers, to consider alternative ways, means, and strategies towards the incorporation of computer-
based assessment (CBA) methods. This automation can be easily realised by the ever-growing field
of computer-aided assessment (CAA) software that is currently permeating the educational landscape
of the world. While some individuals may argue that CBA software has been proven in only limited
situations and that it is very costly to develop, it nevertheless remains a viable alternative technology
that is beginning to challenge many traditional and out-dated modes of assessment. In this chapter the
rationale for developing CBA has been discussed and thereafter pertinent issues around the types of
CBA, advantages of CBA, proprietary, and non proprietary software have been analysed. The chapter
concludes by firstly, highlighting strategic planning issues for consideration in engaging computer
based assessment and secondly it provides modalities for future research directions within the arena of
computer based assessment. These two components are key in designing ICT strategies for continuous
academic evaluation.
Section III
E-Concepts
Chapter XI
Creating Competitive Advantage: The Emergence of a New Business through
Collaborative Networks – An Empirical Case Study in the ICT Sector /
Arla Juntunen ......................................................................................................................................202
This chapter addresses collaborative business networks at the level of industry/cluster networks, which
is important and relevant from the strategic management perspective in several industries. This chapter
examines two current “hot topics”: the emergence of a new Internet driven business group, and its